Sozo American Cuisine

Every time, it’s been great! Thanks for taking car of me and my son all week! I recommend the sirloin or the ahi tuna.

Amazing steaks! Trendy atmosphere and great service. Only downfall were drinks. Classic margarita was too sweet. Mango mojito had too much club soda.

I was craving a steak after driving through Nebraska and seeing all the cows. Overall the meal was good with just a few small catches. The waitress had little knowledge of the beers. When I asked what one was she just brought me a bottle with no information other than it was an ale. Not her fault but someone should inform them of the products they are selling. The salad for my meal was rather bland and under dressed. I ordered a ribeye rare. The steak was delivered closer to medium but still tasted great. The risotto was delicious and thanks to my waitress she suggested I added mushrooms. Very glad I did. She also suggested the blackened cauliflower which was good but slightly cool. If it had been warm I feel it would have been outstanding. For desert I got the mounds desert. Yummm
Hopefully this review doesn’t sound harsh as the meal was very good. They were really trying and put out a great meal that would have been OUTSTANDING with a few small tweaks. Wish I could choose 4 ½ stars

After eating at Sozo about 10 times now, I consider it one of the better options in the Kearney area. The ambience is darker, modern, and refreshing. Some very tasty appetizers — the cajun shrimp and buffalo chicken dip are both exceptional. As far as entrees go, I’ve had some very good steaks here, while sometimes I’m left a little disappointed — overall, I feel steaks are the way to go (the bacon mac&cheese side is fantastic, very rich). The tuna risotto is another fantastic entrée that has never disappointed. For seafood in Kearney, this is probably your best bet. I recommend getting a reservation if you plan on going on the weekend, as this place fills up quickly.

I had the Jambalaya fettuccine, and found it to be a quite tasty blend of sauces, chicken, and alligator (?they say). If you’re from New Orleans, you wouldn’t recognize this. It’s a toned done midwest version, so I’m giving it four stars for being very tasty, even if it’s not true Louisiana cuisine. It seems they were not very interested in maintaining choices in beer, as they were out of my first three picks from the menu.

Just stopped into Sozo driving from Chicago to Colorado and was pleasantly surprised! My husband and I were greeted by a nice woman with a big smile at the front. She was attentive, accommodated my food allergy and the food came out fast and hot. We had a chicken Caesar salad and the blackened chicken sandwich with sweet potato tots. It was AMAZING! Nice break from fast food. The seasoning on the chicken and bread was to die for! Stop here if your passing thru!

Had a nice dinner here on our way to Colorado. Top sirloin done to perfection, and chicken Caesar was great. Stuffed baked potato was not warm enough so a quick nuke solved the problem. Harli, our waitress was great.

I can’t think of another restaurant that is more deserving of 5 stars than Sozo. We stopped here after getting terrible service at another restaurant in town and I’m so glad we did. The steak was cooked perfectly and seasoned great — it’s also important to note they list the names of the farms where they get their meat from on the menu, which I thought was a great touch. Along with the steak, I got a delicious salad, loaded baked potato, and the best cheesecake I’ve had. The person with me ordered the salmon and it was beautifully presented and tasted great. On top of the amazing food, the service was equally as amazing. Being out of towners, our server answered any question we had regarding the menu and she even took a lot of time to talk with us for an extended period of time and I’ve never had a waitress that has done that before. It was an amazing restaurant experience and I can’t wait to go back again.

The best ribeye we have ever tasted, tender and juicy. It was so good we returned for lunch and had the hangar steak. Both were extremely flavorful and perfectly cooked. Side dishes of mashed potatoes and blackened cauliflower were perfectly executed. The lunch and dinner menus were varied with many options featuring local ingredients as well as more exotic options like alligator sausage.
Do not eat here for breakfast, which serves a poor Holiday Inn menu. You want lunch or dinner only.

I looked Sozo American Cuisine up and, like some of the other reviews, was surprised it was in a Holiday Inn. I had my hesitations but with all the good reviews I wanted to give them a try. Well, I’m happy to report that this is a very good place! I ordered the 14 oz ribeye with fries and a salad. They are very generous with the fries and the steak was flavorful. Salad was fresh and served with a nice vinagarette.
For my beverage, there were several beers on tap. I tried the twisted pretzel wheat beer (brewed by Shock Top). Sozo is a great place just north of I-​80 and close to several hotels.
The décor was nice and the wait staff friendly. There were quite a few people dining at the bar whilst watching various sporting events on several TVs. They are all muted so you can enjoy your dinner. You can also sit down at a table if you so choose. All in all, a good place to have some dinner when in Kearney.

A bit pricy but a great menu. I love it when I am stumped on what to get cause everything looks good.
I ended up getting the pasta loaded with veggies and shrimp it was very good. Although they were a bit skimpy on the shrimp. I devoured my bowl embarrassingly fast.
Speaking of the bowls, they are super cute. Lol. Gotta hook my next dinner party up with some just like that.

This meal was amazing. I had the carnitas. Started off with a caesar salad that had homemade croutons and Parmesan flakes with just enough dressing. The carnitas came sitting on what was described to me as corn pancakes. Seem strange at the time I was told that, but this meal exceeded my expectations. Great flavor, the carnitas browned enough on the out sides, topped with a bit of sour cream and a spicy green sauce. Next time I will ask for a bit more green sauce on the side. Love spicy

Giving three stars for not having 3 $$$ on Unilocal.Its a little pricey for Kearney. On a good note there hamburger was really good. Fresh ground beef and bacon mixed together every morning i was told by our waitress.

Had dinner here with a guest, then breakfast this morning. Everything was great! Ordered a fantastic ribeye last night with several Moscow Mules. The steak was cooked to perfection and the drink was perfect! As for breakfast, I ordered the Nebraska Skillet. I loved it! I can’t wait to return.

Of all the meals I had in Kearney over the last week, my dinner here was by FAR, the best.
Amazing service. Really delicious food.
To start, we ordered the cheese plate and the buffalo chicken dip. I would highly recommend the dip, it was a surprisingly awesome choice.
For my main course, I had the filet, with a side of Mac and cheese. The filet was cooked perfectly. Super tender, lightly seasoned to perfection. The Mac and cheese was phenomenal.
I cannot think of any reason to take off a star. I would highly recommend this place.

Found this place while road tripping to Chicago. I didn’t have high hopes for the food scene of Kerney, NE but this place was actually really good! I had a delicious Kale Cesar with fresh apples, dried cranberries and sweet almonds to start. I wish I had ordered a whole entrée of it because it was that good! I had the vegetable pasta with fresh veggies, parm and a sweet balsamic reduction. My husband got the organic half chicken which was perfectly cooked. Overall service was excellent. I definitely recommend.

I’ve been here twice each time I visited Kearney and for all of the positive reviews here I wasn’t exactly blown away with Sozo. It could’ve been because I wasn’t really attracted to anything on the menu during lunch hours to be honest but hear me out…
The restaurant is attached to the Holiday inn in town and it looks quite nice and welcoming inside with the booths and seating by the bar. There is however a section right next to the kitchen with a couple of tables that are masked by curtains to try and have a little privacy from the chefs but these tables are relatively noisy with dishes and chatter so I would avoid sitting at them.
The service was adequate and I had no complaints. I had a couple of questions about the menu as well as substitutions and they took care of everything without any problems.
Onto the food. I always get the buffalo chicken dip with pita chips. It’s delicious and is was my favorite part of my lunches here. They cook the buffalo dip in a pot sprinkled with blue cheese and chicken. It’s very creamy and thick which was to my liking. Might be the best appetizer I’ve ever eaten. The two entrees I’ve had here were the Crab Rangoon Pizza and the ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ Burger that’s 50% ground beef and 50% bacon with an over easy egg on top. Coming from NJ/​NY area, I’m not particularly a gourmet pizza eater. I like plain slices with fresh ingredients. Having said that this pizza was executed perfectly and was one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had. The crab tasted flavorful with it’s garlic seasoning and cream cheese and was a perfect combination on pizza that I’ve never would’ve thought of. The ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ burger on the other hand was a bit disappointing. Maybe it’s because I’ve never had ground bacon before combined with beef but I didn’t enjoy the concept. I ordered the burger medium and with every bite I could taste medium rare bacon and that’s it. It didn’t feel like burger and it for sure didn’t have enough beef in it and I guess that’s why I didn’t enjoy it that much.
So overall, i give 4 stars for the buffalo chicken dip and pizza selection as I’m sure the rest of their options as just as tasty. One star off for the menu. Get the feeling that they’re trying too hard to create the restaurant into something in which Kearney doesn’t exactly need. There aren’t too much fine dining options in the area.

First of all the service here is excellent. I ate alone on this Saturday night with four weddings going on in the hotel and I was seated in a great 4 person booth. Callie was my server she checked on me twelve times (almost!) refilled my ice tea four times. I felt like a king. She is great!
Started with a great fresh salad of romaine and leaf lettuce with RED ripe cherry tomatoes carrots and red onion with croutons. Ordered a medium rare ribeye steak with asparagus grilled and glazed with a balsamic reduction. The 14 oz was the biggest 14 oz steak ever. It was all perfect. The steak was well seasoned hot and juicy. Almost forgot I ordered Bernaise sauce on the side and ended up devouring every drop of it. The service was FAST friendly and not intrusive. Note there medium rare is the typical all pink with warm pink center. Not high end steakhouse medium rare that has a cool center. But I got what I wanted!
Finished off the feast with a pretty good bread pudding and a cup of coffee too.
You may question the five stars. No this is not Gibson’s or Gene & Georgetti steakhouses in Chicago but I paid under forty dollars for my entire meal which doesn’t buy half a steak a la carte at those two spots. The food and the service exceeded my expectations and I gladly paid my bill.
I plan to return here next week
On the flip flop of this road trip. Ciao! Chow!

Loved this place. Lots of energy and atmosphere, not to mention wonderful food and drink. They specialize in steaks and burgers but have a wide enough selection to make most people happy. Great bar and wine selection too.

After a very long day on the road, and pre-​ordering from a local Japanese place only to find that they were closed for the weekend, walking down to the hotel lobby to eat whatever was here we were beyond happy to see a great menu with options for everyone.
Decent drink list, full bar and great local craft beers.
We had a locally sourced ribeye and tuna with mushroom risotto. Really very happy! Nice attentive server. Quick service and now we are on to the pool!
Oh and veggie’s were fresh! Snap peas and green beans!
Highly recommend after a day in the car. With kids.
Kids eat free if you are staying here at the Holiday Inn!